Daniel Parke Custis

Daniel Parke Custis

Daniel Parke Custis (born October 15, 1711 in York County , Virginia , † July 8, 1757 in New Kent County , Virginia) was a wealthy planter from Virginia, whose widow Martha later married George Washington . Custis was the son of John Custis (1678–1749), an influential member of the Virginia Governor's Council , and Frances Parke Custis. He was a grandson of Daniel Parke, also a member of the council and governor of the Leeward Islands . He married Martha Dandridge on May 15, 1750. They had four children:

• Daniel Parke Custis, Jr. (born November 19, 1751 - † February 19, 1754)
• Frances Parke Custis (April 12, 1753 - April 1, 1757)
• John "Jacky" Parke Custis (born November 27, 1754 - † November 5, 1781)
• Martha "Patsy" Parke Custis (* 1756 - June 19, 1773)

Daniel Parke Custis did not play a leading role in the politics of colonial Virginia. Two years after his death, his widow Martha married George Washington, who became the stepfather of the two surviving Custis children.

The Custis legacy

Since Daniel Parke Custis died without a will, the legal succession came into force. As a result, his widow received a third of his assets for life ( dower share ), and she managed the other two thirds in trust for her children. In January 1759 the inventory lists of the Custis property recorded 285 slaves and in October 1759 17,779 acres (71.95 square kilometers) of land, spread over 5 counties. John Parke Custis was the only one of his children who could inherit his own and thus became the sole heir. After Martha's marriage to George Washington, the dowry portion, including the "dowry negroes," went under Washington's control, after his death the rights returned to her, and eventually, after her death, to her first husband's children. Due to Martha Washington's “dowry share” (in 1799 there were 153 slaves), the Custis property could only be sold after her death in 1802.

Web links

• http://marthawashington.us/exhibits/show/martha-washington--a-life/the-custis-years